Tuesday, July 29, 2014

Anna Meredith - ALRAnna Meredith - Unicron: Meredith is a fricking electronics wizard and her records make me super giddy. These gems are from the highly recommended Jet Black Raider EP and she will make your head spin too.

DAM - Mali Huriye (I Don't Have Freedom)DAM - WardeDAM - Ya Sayidati: Palestinian rappers DAM have some great flows and you should check out their videos out youtube.

Death Cab For Cutie - 405 (Acoustic)Death Cab For Cutie - Technicolor Girls: So yeah I have been going back and digging in to the old Death Cab catalogue. These 2 are from the Forbidden Love EP.

Gowns - HeavenGowns - Marked: Continuing my love affair with EMA, going back to her old band Gowns and Broken Bones is FUCKING AMAZING OMG. That viola on Heaven gives me the ecstatics. And an earlier version of Marked? Oh shudder.

Tuesday, July 22, 2014

C/\TN/\PS - Crush On UC/\TN/\PS - Last NightC/\TN/\PS - Txt Me Goodnite: That is "C/\TN/\PS", and they are awsome. Their "The Feels" mixtape form last year is rocking my world in a big way. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

Christian Löffler - NotesChristian Löffler - RomanChristian Löffler - Young Alaska: Some of the most beautiful and textured electronic music. Minimal, deep, housey, complex. If you like Four Tet, this stuff blows most of that stuff out of the water. Young Alaska is a gem. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

Gowns - CheryleeGowns - White Like Heaven: I am soooo in love with the two EMA albums, and then I was reminded of the precursor band: Gowns. I got those albums and oh they are a slightly messier and gritter and equally glorious explorations. These two tracks are from Red State, which fuses the dark pop with post rock sound scapes and ethereal whisper. Recommended.

Sharon Van Etten - Keep: The dreamiest of dreams from the 2009 album Because I Was In Love.

Shlohmo - Rained The Whole Time (Nicolas Jaar Remix)Shlohmo - The Way You Do (D33J Remix): Drenched down liquid honey remixes from the Vacation EP and you know you need it. It's all this good.

The Herbaliser - Inside The MachineThe Herbaliser - Take 'em On: After oh so many I don't get hyped by too many new albums from the Ninja Tunes classics roster, and I wasn't all about There Were Seven, but these 2 tracks from the 2012 album still have it going on.

Two Door Cinema Club - Sleep Alone (Matt Bishop Remix): Already some of the best dance pop rock, it just takes a teeny remix touch to get it out to the clubs.

Wednesday, July 16, 2014

Charles Bradley - Crying in the ChapelCharles Bradley - Dusty BlueCharles Bradley - You Put the Flame On It: This old soul man is all right by me. It will be hard to find anyone who is not finding glorious moments on Victim of Love. Recommended

Explosions in the Sky & David Wingo - Dear Madison (Prince Avalanche OST)Explosions in the Sky & David Wingo - Send Off (Prince Avalanche OST)Explosions in the Sky & David Wingo - Wading (Prince Avalanche OST): I do this a lot: get the soundtrack with no intentions of ever seeing the movie. Great little pieces all over the lovely Prince Avalanche soundtrack.

John Zorn - Contes De FeesJohn Zorn - Kol Nidre: This might be a bit much for some of you, BUT BEAR WITH ME. Zorn is back with another major CD of compositions for large ensemble, and the examples here aren't even the peak of the disc, which is a 20+ minute glorious track. Fragmentations, Prayers And Interjections might not be for everyone, but if you love contemporary ensemble music, it's really remarkable.

Sidi Touré - MaïmounaSidi Touré - Ni see ay ga done (It is to You That I Sing): Hot jams from Koïma! I always check out all of the Tourés, and this album is just OK, but I like these 2 a lot.

The Decemberists - One Engine: Another track from the curious little "The Hunger Games: Songs From District 12 & Beyond" cash-in comp.

The Pastels - Secret Music: I was excited for the new album Slow Summits, but not much else on there really grabbed me.

Serengeti - Bang Em: I don't get it whole-hog, but I love his commitment to the style and character. From the Kenny Dennis LP.

The Acorn - DarcyThe Acorn - For The Sake Of My PrideThe Acorn - The Pink Ghosts: I recently pulled out the 2007 album Pink Ghosts out again and ahhhh it's such a marvellous classic. It is up their with Rae Spoon's Superioryouareinferior as one of the quintissential Canadian folk rock albums. HIGHLY RECOMMENDED.

The Boredoms - Ant 10 Estereo 10: I was a Boredoms hardcore fan from the early 90s, and I think I bought up to Super Roots 8 right when they came out in Japan. But I am only recently getting back to the psych discography and Super Roots 10 is an extendo remix jam that is oh so satisfying, if you love that vibe getting churned forward for an album. Which I absolutely do.

Wednesday, July 2, 2014

Beyonce - Pretty HurtsBeyonce - xxxFlawless ft Chimamanda Ngozi Adiche: I realize I forgot to mention anything off Beyonce's self-titled album outside of the brilliant Frank Ocean collab. I’m not going to get in to those "Beyonce as false feminist" conversations, because for me I'm aces at stripping context from around things when I need to, and so here with are with two other great tracks. At the very least, I think the storytelling brazenness of Pretty Hurts deserves some immense kudos.

The Dillinger Escape Plan - One of Us Is the KillerThe Dillinger Escape Plan - The Threat Posed by Nuclear Weapons: Have they always paid so much homage to Mike Patton? One of Us Is the Killer is a great little album when you want that dapper intensity.

Youth Lagoon - Attic DoctorYouth Lagoon - DroplaYouth Lagoon - Mute: I feel about Wondrous Bughouse the same way I thought about their first album: a few magical tracks on it, and I can't get in to the rest, despite the thunderous praise of everyone else. YMMV.